When students are back at their desks Tuesday at three Ann Arbor schools, they'll find principles and practices of the district's International Baccalaureate program seeping into their classrooms.

Approximately 2,500 students in Ann Arbor Public Schools will go through the comprehensive program at Huron High, Scarlett Middle and Mitchell Elementary schools. The district isn't fully implementing the program until fall 2017, but aspects of it will start affecting students right away.

Ann Arbor will have a Primary Years Programme for grades K-5, Middle Years Programme for grades 6-10 and Diploma Programme for grades 11-12.

The district is in year two of a three-year implementation process. Right now, the IB program is in the candidate stage, with full authorization expected in the 2017-2018 school year.

"It's a very phased approach. When kids come back, they will see some principles of IB immediately, in particular the learner profile," said Kevin Karr, IB district facilitator for Ann Arbor Public Schools.

The district also is in year one of three years of hiring teachers to fit the program. All teachers at Huron, Scarlett and Mitchell will have to reapply for their jobs in a phased approach this year and in the next two years.

"What they will see this year is fully staffed school of teachers who've chosen the IB philosophy and pedagogy for teaching," said Superintendent Jeanice Swift. "We now have on board staff members who've received training and are committed to that philosophy."

District officials say they opted to have teachers reapply in order to ensure the best fit for the IB program. The teachers union criticized the move, saying it leaves teachers out of the decision process. The union now has a liaison to the district's IB leadership team to help smooth out issues over the program.

What is IB?

IB is a global curriculum founded in 1968 in Geneva, Switzerland. It offers a teaching style that embraces inquiry-based learning, or asking students questions and guiding them to finding answers.

Students are more engaged in their education, Karr said, and then they take what they've learned and put it to use in a service project for their community.

"'Every kid benefits from being in a high-quality school," he said.

Teachers will try out various principles related to inquiry-based teaching and develop curriculum this fall. In January, teachers will implement the first "unit of inquiry."

The program involves the learner profile, a series of traits the program aims to develop in all students, and units of inquiry, or questions to guide education in subject areas from science to English.

The IB learner profile includes principles for students, encouraging them to be thinkers, communicators, risk takers and open-minded.

A unit of inquiry might ask students to answer why it's important for people to get along in their communities, said Wendy Rothman, the Primary Years Programme facilitator and a Mitchell Elementary School teacher.

First-graders research ideas about friendships and relationships and learn about how people are connected, she said. An action a first-grader might take as a result of the learning is making a new friend.

Chris Erickson, a Huron High School English teacher, said his students will study the concept and creation of identity through books in one unit of inquiry.

"It's teaching kids how to think ... and allowing them to practice it over time," he said. "And celebrating there are different interpretations of a text that are valid."

IB encourages students to make connections between subjects and in real life examples, Karr said.

"This is why it becomes meaningful. They aren't just sitting and getting," he said. "This is what real people do when they learn. We just don't happen to call it IB."

Rothman said education has become compartmentalized over time.

But even with an IB program, Karr said, the units of inquiry do not fit into every part of the curriculum, such as math.

How much does it cost?

Ann Arbor schools will pay $9,000 per school for licensing, a total of about $27,000, Swift said.

Professional development for teachers is another cost of the program.

Swift said the district is using Title II federal funds already designated for professional development to help Ann Arbor teachers earn IB certification.

By hosting trainers and having in-house training, she said, the district is keeping the training cost-effective. Training continued the week before school and Ann Arbor schools does not yet have a total cost added up, she said.

Often, districts implementing IB have to send teachers to cities such as Chicago for training.

Additionally, Swift said, the district hired new teachers who already had IB certification.

There are about 170 teachers between the three schools, Karr said, and almost all teachers have received training.

Options in high school

Students at Huron High School who still want to take Advanced Placement classes don't have to worry.

Although all freshmen and sophomores will be in the IB program, the school will offer juniors and seniors at Huron High School various educational paths, including general track and AP courses.

Juniors and seniors can choose to go through the Diploma Programme, in which students earn a special IB diploma, or take some IB classes and not be in the Diploma Programme. Those who take AP courses will not be able to earn the IB diploma.

Huron High School will offer six languages, business and management, music, visual arts and film classes in the IB program. There are not AP equivalents to all the IB courses, Karr said.

Even within the IB Diploma Programme, students can choose higher level or standard level courses.

In order to ensure student success, he said, Huron High School is also boosting its intervention programs to support students.

"We think a lot of kids will want to be a part of (the Diploma Programme)," Karr said. "The program can expand to being inclusive of any kid who would find benefit in it."